Southampton forward Nathan Tella wants to repay the faith shown in him after signing a new three-and-a-half-year contract at St Mary’s.
Tella, 22, has made 33 appearances and scored two goals since joining Saints in 2017 following a decade spent in Arsenal’s youth set-up.
“I’m over the moon. I really like the club, I’m really enjoying my time here,” Tella told the official Southampton website after extending his stay on the south coast until 2025.
“The fact that the club are believing in me is something I’m so thankful for.
“The club have been nothing but great to me all season, and last season as well. They believe in me and now I’ve got to believe in myself.
“Moving forward, I want to repay the faith they have in me. I want to play more games, be involved in more goals and help the team progress.”
Tella’s first-team debut came against Norwich in June 2020 and he has made 11 appearances this season, eight of them in the Premier League.
Saints boss Ralph Hasenhuttl said: “Nathan is a good example of a young player with a lot of potential who is willing to learn and to push himself.
“These are the sort of players we like to develop at Southampton.
“He has played some excellent games already and made some good improvements in his time working with us.
“I think he can develop a lot more here, so it is good that he can focus on improving his qualities with us even more over the coming seasons.”
